Talk show host Hank Stolz recently welcomed QCC President Gail Carberry, to speak about her experience and upcoming retirement at the end of this academic year.

On the Hank Stolz Experience, Dr. Carberry spoke about the importance of life-long learning.

She graduated from Worcester State and her first job was teaching in Worcester public schools.

“I always wanted to be a teacher, an educator,” she said. She and her husband moved to Western Massachusetts, where they lived and raised their three children for almost 30 years. She went back to school and earned her master’s and doctorate, working at Springfield Technical Community College.

“Public Colleges offer huge value for our students,” she said. She spoke of the pathways QCC offers to other colleges, such as Worcester Polytechnic Institute for engineers, Elms College or Anna Maria College for nursing or public service careers, Worcester State University and Fitchburg State University for bachelor’s degrees.

“We have a great team of deans and faculty, we work closely with the transfer office to build better pathways,” she said.

She spoke about how many students qualify for federal financial aid, but many students, more than 80 percent, also work while they attend college.

“Providing free community college has been a topic of interest, that has been discussed at the national level,” she said. “I do hope we continue to provide a more affordable pathway for students in Massachusetts.”

During her 11-year tenure, the college has expanded nursing and other healthcare programs, along with more manufacturing and technical programs.

She spoke about growing enrollment, opening the downtown healthcare campus and working with Southbridge to create a campus there, more than 500 students a year attend classes in Southbridge now.

Working with the community to create job pipelines, expanding curriculum in manufacturing, photonics, robotics to meet needs of area employers, also has been an accomplishment she is proud to have been a part of, she said.

“Worcester is my hometown, it has been a blessing for me to have been able to come back and give something back to the community,” she said.

Six senior dental hygiene students presented research topics at the Yankee Dental Congress Dental and Hygiene Scientific Poster Session on Saturday, January 28, at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

The dental hygiene students submitted seven scientific abstracts and three abstracts were selected to be presented at this conference, which is a regional event open to all the dental hygiene...

Six senior dental hygiene students presented research topics at the Yankee Dental Congress Dental and Hygiene Scientific Poster Session on Saturday, January 28, at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

The dental hygiene students submitted seven scientific abstracts and three abstracts were selected to be presented at this conference, which is a regional event open to all the dental hygiene schools from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine and Rhode Island. There were a total of eight spots available in the dental hygiene division and QCC students held three of those. They competed against four-year dental hygiene programs (University of New England) and post-graduate program (MCPHS University). Our students presented with dental undergraduate students and dental post-graduate students.

This is the tenth year dental hygiene students have attended this regional event, where the American Dental Hygiene Association holds its annual District 1 Student Business Meeting. Dental hygiene schools from New England gather to network and learn about current legislation that is shaping the future of the dental hygiene profession. This year, 30 dental hygiene students from QCC attended.

“We may be on the smaller size of dental hygiene programs, but we are mighty when it comes to supporting our professional organization,” said Dental Hygiene Professor Elaine Trottier. “As a side note, our dental hygiene program has hosted two of these District 1 Student Business Meetings and provided support for the ADHA Annual Session which celebrated 100th birthday of dental hygiene profession in Boston 2013.”

The students who presented were:

Michelle Acker and Sadie Ford: “Obesity and Periodontal Disease: Is there a Correlation?”

S.H.E. hosted a recent seminar, “Life After QCC — What’s Your Next Goal, Let Us Help You Get There!” on February 15 for students to learn more about transfer and job opportunities. Staff from Transfer Services and Career Placement Services spoke about opportunities students can take advantage of, whether they are looking to transfer for further education or start their career.

S.H.E. hosted a recent seminar, “Life After QCC — What’s Your Next Goal, Let Us Help You Get There!” on February 15 for students to learn more about transfer and job opportunities. Staff from Transfer Services and Career Placement Services spoke about opportunities students can take advantage of, whether they are looking to transfer for further education or start their career.

S.H.E. (Support. Help. Encourage) is a mentoring group for women currently attending QCC that connects these students with female members of the college faculty and staff to assist them in a variety of issues on and off campus.

“Our hope is that by introducing students to effective mentors and seminar speakers we will help them feel connected to the college community in a way that encourages growth, provides support, and gives them confidence to reach their future goals including graduation and transfer,” said Susan Meola, Assistant to the Dean of Students/ESL Instructor.

The group hosts three seminars a semester that are open to the college community. Topics are determined from surveys of the S.H.E. members.

Ms. Meola said the program has really taken off this year, with 31 students matched with mentors. “This is a great opportunity for our female students, to meet with mentors,” she said.

“The seminars are very informative,” she said. “At this one, we had lots of interaction and great questions from students.”

Upcoming seminars include:

“Understanding Your College Finances — Short and Long Term,” March 10, 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at HLC 109A

“The Value of Giving and Service To Others,” April 13, 9:30-11:30 a.m. at HLC 109A

Fire chiefs from around the state met in Worcester to discuss fire safety trends and training.

The Fire Chiefs Association of Massachusetts hosted its Professional Development Conference at the DCU Center from February 28 through March 2.

"The FCAM Professional Development Conference is an amazing opportunity for fire service leaders to gather and learn and hear the latest trends in our profession from fire behavior, to leadership, to risk management,” said Auburn Fire Chief Stephen Coleman, QCC Fire Science instructor. “The speakers are some of the most respected in the business and all carry a consistent message that regardless of how long you have been in the fire service, you’re never too old to learn something new, and that there is always something new to learn. This is a message that we promote and instill to the students at QCC."

The Fire Science Conference featured keynote speaker Shane Ray, who has been a volunteer firefighter since 1984 and a career firefighter since 1994. He served as a mayor for six years and the Tennessee Fire Chief’s Legislative Chairman for 12 years. Throughout his career, he had been committed to public service with a “Do It Different” mentality and thinks all stakeholders are important.

Other speakers included Larry Kelly, who will discuss how to select firefighter and how to recognize when a fitness for duty evaluation is needed; and Gordon Graham, who will discuss organizational risk management.

Classes and seminars were offered on topics including Fireground Management and Accountability with a simulation trainer; Succession Plans for Fire Service Leaders; Taking Action Against Cancer in the Fire Service; and Massachusetts Active Shooter Response Guidance. There also was mechanics class offered in pump training.

QCC Professor and author Nicole Payen was invited to be part of a panel discussion to explore the significance of African-American literature.

Organized by Danielle Legros Georges, Boston poet laureate and Lesley University professor, the panel included five black writers and teachers from Massachusetts. “Blackness in the 21st Century” focused on black identity and featured Ifeanyi...

QCC Professor and author Nicole Payen was invited to be part of a panel discussion to explore the significance of African-American literature.

Organized by Danielle Legros Georges, Boston poet laureate and Lesley University professor, the panel included five black writers and teachers from Massachusetts. “Blackness in the 21st Century” focused on black identity and featured Ifeanyi Menkiti, Wellesley professor and Grolier Poetry Book Shop owner; Nicole Terez Dutton, former Somerville poet laureate and an editor at The Baffler and Transition Magazine; Barbara Lewis, director of the William Monroe Trotter Institute for the Study of Black History and Culture at UMass Boston; Nikòl Payen, writer and Quinsigamond Community College professor; and Enzo Silon Surin, Central Square Press publisher and Bunker Hill Community College professor.

“The panels are meant to underscore how African-American literature has been and continues to be a source of celebration of black lives, sustenance in struggle, and site of resistance,” said Legros Georges.

The first panel was held February 23, at the Rabb Lecture Hall of the Boston Public Library. The second panel, “Black Style, Black Language,” is slated for April 3.

Ms. Payen is a Haitian American who was born in Port-au-Prince and migrated to the United States as a child. She is a former assistant editor at Essence magazine, where her work has been published. Her other writings have appeared in The Legislative Gazette, Point of View, Callaloo, and Crab Orchard Review. She is the author of “The Birthing,” a full-length play. Ms. Payen holds a master’s degree in Fine Arts in Creative Nonfiction from Sarah Lawrence College and has taught literature and writing at The College of New Rochelle and Mount Holyoke College. She is a former assistant professor of English at Westfield University and is currently assistant professor of English at QCC.

She has written a series of autobiographical essays. She worked as a translator at Guantanamo Bay with Haitian refugees in the early 1990s. Her work was examined by April Shemak, an English professor and author, in the book “Asylum Speakers.”

“Her stories are about her experience working for the government, and more than that, the experience of being in between (as an American citizen of Haitian descent),” Ms. Shemak said, according to an article on Sam Houston State University website. “She is feeling a certain level of complicity and uncertainty of her role as a translator, and whether she is helping them or not. It is an interesting take on testimony because she’s not telling her story to gain asylum but more looking at her experience as a translator and working with refugees.”

Ms. Payen also contributed to the anthology “The Butterfly’s Way: Voices From the Haitian Dyaspora in the United States,” edited by Edwidge Danticat.

Psi Beta Honor Society and Psychology Club were excited to host Dr. Tatyana Shteinlukht on Wednesday, February 22, at noon in 109A HLC. The topic of her talk was “ECT: A Danger, or Effective Therapy?”

Dr. Shteinlukht brought a patient and their spouse to discuss their experience with ECT as well.

Electroconvulsive therapy has been used since the 1940s. Considerable controversy exists about the effectiveness of this treatment, as well as the potential side effects. Dr. Shteinlukht is an expert in the field, who provides this treatment at UMass Worcester.

If you are a faculty member or advisor, please inform your students of the bountiful benefits membership affords. Membership is by invitation only, in order to be invited the student must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 with 16 college credits earned at Quinsigamond Community College.

The purpose of Phi Theta Kappa is to recognize and encourage scholarship among two-year college students. To achieve this purpose, Phi Theta Kappa provides opportunity for the development of leadership and service, for an intellectual climate for exchange of ideas and ideals, for lively fellowship for scholars, and for stimulation of interest in continuing academic excellence.

Phi Theta Kappa’s mission is two-fold:

Recognize and encourage the academic achievement of two-year college students.

Provide opportunities for individual growth and development through participation in honors, leadership, service and fellowship programming.

Priority Registration begins March 20! Register early to get the classes, schedule, and professors you want!

Look at the course schedule before meeting with an advisor so you know which classes are being offered and when they are available. Be flexible with your course time requirements if you can, as not all sections of a class may be open. Plan out your schedule with first and second choices for course times...

Priority Registration begins March 20! Register early to get the classes, schedule, and professors you want!

Look at the course schedule before meeting with an advisor so you know which classes are being offered and when they are available. Be flexible with your course time requirements if you can, as not all sections of a class may be open. Plan out your schedule with first and second choices for course times.Make an appointment with your faculty advisor.

There also are Walk-In Transfer Sessions (WITS) where are encouraged to drop in with no appointment necessary to learn more about how to develop transfer plans if you are interested in transferring to a four-year college from QCC. To help streamline the registration process, students with Advising Center Advisors will not need appointments to meet with an advisor From March 20-March 31, simply walk-in to the advising center Mon-Thurs, 8-7 p.m. and Fri, 8-5 p.m.

This is a friendly reminder “QCC Women of Distinction 2017: Our History is Our Strength” nominations are being accepted through March 10.

March is Women’s History Month and QCC has an abundance of outstanding women. We invite you to nominate a student who has distinguished herself by overcoming great odds and/or making a difference. Please use the official form for your nomination...

This is a friendly reminder “QCC Women of Distinction 2017: Our History is Our Strength” nominations are being accepted through March 10.

March is Women’s History Month and QCC has an abundance of outstanding women. We invite you to nominate a student who has distinguished herself by overcoming great odds and/or making a difference. Please use the official form for your nomination.

All nomination forms are due by 4:00 p.m., Friday, March 10. Nominations will not be accepted after this deadline.

The program is scheduled for Friday, March 31, at 2:00 p.m. in 109 A & B in the Harrington Learning Center. This event is a celebration and special opportunity for the women we honor to be acknowledged and gather together.

The program will include group pictures, followed by a brief formal presentation. Honorees will be welcomed, recognized by President Gail Carberry and given a gift and certificate. We invite you and your honoree to join us for light refreshments and relaxed conversations. Each sponsor is responsible for inviting and attending the event with their nominee. Please be sure you can attend with your nominee.

Psi Beta Honor Society and Psychology Club are excited to announce the annual PsychFest event, an afternoon of music, art and community, on April 7. They will be raising funds for YOU, Inc.’s substance abuse treatment program for adolescents.

Psi Beta Honor Society and Psychology Club are excited to announce the annual PsychFest event, an afternoon of music, art and community, on April 7. They will be raising funds for YOU, Inc.’s substance abuse treatment program for adolescents.

If you are a performer, or know someone who might be interested in performing, please get in touch! They are looking for singers, poets, musicians, comedians, dancers and other performers. The deadline for signing up to perform at the event is March 17.

The event will be April 7, from 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. at the Hebert Auditorium on the main QCC campus.

We are very pleased to announce the following full-time staff updates:

On February 6, 2017, Enrollment Management, Student Engagement and Community Connections welcomed Jason Kurland as Assistant Dean of Students. Mr. Kurland has been working at Quinsigamond Community College since 2008, most recently as a Senior Financial Aid Counselor. He has also held positions in...

We are very pleased to announce the following full-time staff updates:

On February 6, 2017, Enrollment Management, Student Engagement and Community Connections welcomed Jason Kurland as Assistant Dean of Students. Mr. Kurland has been working at Quinsigamond Community College since 2008, most recently as a Senior Financial Aid Counselor. He has also held positions in customer service and quality analysis in the private sector. Mr. Kurland earned a Bachelor’s of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Science in School Counseling from Fitchburg State University.

On February 6, 2017, Academic Affairs welcomed Brittany Casasanta as Simulation Laboratory Specialist within the School of Health Care. Ms. Casasanta brings to the College over 12 years of experience in emergency medicine that includes Respiratory Therapy and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT-B) in multiple busy 911 systems in both Worcester and Boston, and has been both a Communications Supervisor and a Field Training Officer for new EMTs. Ms. Casasanta earned an Associate of Science in Respiratory Care from Quinsigamond Community College.

On February 13, 2017, Academic Affairs welcomed Erin Roache as Lead Teacher, Children’s School. Ms. Roache has been working as a Teacher at the Quinsigamond Community College Children’s School since 2009. She has both Lead Teacher and Director II Certification. Ms. Roache earned an Associate Degree in Early Childhood Education and a Certificate, Leadership in Early Childhood Education from Quinsigamond Community College and a Bachelor’s of Arts in English and Theatre from Westfield State University.

On February 14, 2017, Academic Affairs welcomed Glenda Rodriguez as Clerk III-Gateway to College Program. Ms. Rodriguez brings to the College over 14 years of administrative and customer service experience in an academic and private setting. Most recently, she worked as a Clerk III in Southbridge for Quinsigamond Community College. Ms. Rodriguez earned an Associate Degree from Quinsigamond Community College.